Taking Chances
by Sydrianfan4ever
Summary: George has liked Hermione for quite some time now, but he isn't as brave as Fred is when it comes to girls. What happens when he decides to take a chance on Christmas Day? Written for The Ravishing Romance Competition. This is AU because Fred is alive and for some other changes.


**A/N: This is my second one-shot for The Ravishing Romance Competition, the Ultimate Shipping Challenge Extravaganza and the 25 Days of Christmas Competition. It is for the medium level with George and Hermione for the pair. This was my first time writing for this pair! It was quite challenging to write outside of my OTP (Fremione), but I think I managed it in the end. This follows the theory about Hermione possibly returning to Hogwarts for her last year after the war. Reviews would be lovely! Disclaimer: I still don't own Harry Potter. Rowling does.**

Prompts used: Free time, kitten, and spill. I also used family for a prompt in the Christmas Competition.

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Christmas time at the Burrow was George's favorite time of the year. This year Christmas meant something different for the Weasley family. It was the first time everybody had gotten together since the war ended. After it ended, everybody seemed to have gone off their own separate ways. The twins finally had some free time now that they were on vacation until after the New Year. Harry and Ron had begun their training to be an Auror. Hermione went back to Hogwarts to finish her final year, so she was home for the holidays as well. Ginny had started playing for the Holyhead Harpies.

Harry and Ginny were also seriously dating. Fred was with Angelina, Percy was back with Penelope, and Ron was with Luna. Charlie even had somebody, though George already forgot her name. Hermione and George were the only ones who didn't have somebody that Christmas, and that was something he was uncomfortably aware of. Bill and Fleur were coming by later that evening after they spent some time alone first.

George looked around when he thought of Hermione and spotted her sitting on the couch next to Ron, Harry and Ginny. He nudged Fred and started walking over to her direction. He really wanted to know what life was like without any of the Weasleys at Hogwarts. He knelt down next to her with Fred grinning on the other side of him.

"Hello, Granger," he said cheerfully, grinning broadly when he saw her jump in fright.

"Hello George. Hello Fred," she said calmly, looking between the two and then at the others.

"We were just wondering what you thought of Hogwarts now that it was Weasley free," George began conversationally, jumping right to the point. "I bet you miss us," Fred said from beside him. "Fred and I in particular," George said pointedly. Hermione remained quiet while the twins continued their banter, but he could see a smile playing on her lips.

"I did miss you," she answered carefully.

He could see the smile for sure now, but he brightened at those words. Fred grinned as well and elbowed him. "Hear that, Gred? Granger misses us!"

George widened his eyes in surprise. "I wonder who she misses more? The good looking twin, or you?" George asked Fred. George acted like he was pretending to consider the options for her. "I bet it is me." He was the good looking twin after all. He was sure that he was more memorable.

"No, she misses me more."

"No, me."

"No, me!"

"Actually, I missed George more," Hermione said seriously, interrupting the argument that the twins were having. George widened his eyes in surprise. He was glad that he wasn't drinking anything because he would have sprayed it everywhere. "And he is also the good looking twin," she added as an afterthought. She looked amused when the twins sat in stunned silence. "Ginny and I have catching up to do now though. Good night boys," she said briskly before heading up the stairs to where their sister was waiting.

"Wicked," George whispered. "I'm the good looking twin!" he exclaimed loudly. Fred was staring intently at before he whacked him in the back of the head with his hand. "Ow, what was that for?" He demanded, glaring at him. They didn't have to get along all the time just because they were twins.

"You don't listen very well, do you? _She likes you_," Fred said, emphasizing the end part. George raised an eyebrow at his brother. He had harbored some feelings for her for quite some time now, but he never expected anything to come from it. He had even gone shopping for a present with Fred for her, though he didn't think that Fred picked up on his feelings until now.

"You know," George said in an accusing tone. He looked around at Harry and Ron, who were still watching the conversation as if it was a tennis match. "Does everybody else know?" They nodded their heads before disappearing. George narrowed his eyes. He didn't like how his crush had been obvious.

Fred rested an arm on his shoulder. "Yeah, I think everybody knows. Even Angelina knows," he said, as if that settled matters.

"What do I know?" Angelina asked curiously, walking over with a plateful of desserts for the three of them. Fred gratefully took a cookie and kissed his girlfriend on the cheek quickly when their mother was looking away. "George likes Hermione," he said, taking a bite of his cookie. Angelina settled into the couch. "Oh, yeah," she answered, sounding as if that was old news to her.

George let out a helpless sigh and ran a hand through his hair before reaching for a cookie. He was outgoing like his twin was. But when it came to girls, he was pretty shy. He never knew what to do in situations like these. "I suppose I should do something about it," he mused quietly to himself. He didn't miss Fred and Angelina exchange smiles, but he didn't protest that time. He and Fred bent their heads forward and started gathering ideas. It was time for George to pluck up some of his old Gryffindor courage.

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Christmas morning finally arrived. Fred and George had gotten everybody up by jumping on their beds one by one like they did every Christmas. They felt like they had to keep up with the traditions even if they were grownups now. Their mother still insisted on having breakfast before opening presents, much to George's displeasure. The twins begged their parents to let them open presents first. Ginny even joined in, but they were immune to their children's puppy faces and pleas. The three looked crestfallen, but soon cheered up when they saw all the food on the table. Christmas breakfast was still one of George's favorite meals of the year even though the idea of having it after presents.

The conversation was flowing and Fred and George were the first ones to finish with breakfast. They tried to wait patiently, but they ended up staring people down until they finished. George tried not to look at Hermione too much. His stomach flipped each time he did, especially when she laughed at something Harry or Ron said. She caught him looking once and gave him a meaningful look. He was so taken aback by the look and managed to spill his juice on the floor. Silence filled the room when that happened, but he managed to cover up by talking about the snowfall they had last night.

George cringed when he realized he actually started talking about the weather, and was grateful when Fred changed the subject. "Thank you," he muttered to him under his breath. Fred chuckled lightly and said, "You owe me."

His mother finally stood up after the last plate had cleared and the conversation had started to die down. "Well, I suppose it is time for-"

George and Fred interrupted her by yelling, "PRESENTS!" before quickly standing up and running into the other room.

"Those two!" They heard her mutter, but she followed them anyway and the rest of the family poured in as well as Harry and Hermione. George grew anxious as he thought of the gift he got t for her. He hoped she would like it. Fred told him the night before to claim it as his own present for her. The gift exchanging had gone fast. He received mostly Quidditch supplies and stuff for the shop, which he liked.

George decided to give his present to Hermione last because he knew she wasn't expecting one from him. She looked surprised when he announced that he had one for her, and the whole room had gone silent again. He now had proof that everybody did seem to know about his crush on Hermione. He shyly handed her a basket. "This is from me. Happy Christmas," he said quietly. "I hope it's not… I hope you like it."

He watched nervously as Hermione looked at it in astonishment. She pulled the blanket down and gasped when she saw what was inside. "Oh, George! It's so adorable!" She carefully reached and and revealed a black kitten with white paws. Gasps were heard around the room and he could hear people murmuring, though he didn't pay attention to what they were saying.

George blushed at all of the attention and nervously placed his hands in his pockets. "I hope he's not too much. I just noticed how sad you were when Crookshanks died. I know he won't replace him, but everybody should have a pet." Hermione beamed at him before wrapping her arms around his neck.

"He's perfect! I'll call him Mr. Darcy!" she said happily, petting the kitten. George grinned when Mr. Darcy began purring loudly, though his expression changed when she continued smiling. He moved his head forward and shyly pressed his lips on Hermione's cheek and kissed her softly. She looked at him with wide eyes, and he looked away.

"Sorry," he said quickly, feeling his face turning red. He knew he shouldn't have been spontaneous, though he knew that Fred would think that wasn't spontaneous at all. He looked up when he noticed that Hermione was still quiet. She looked like she was debating something with herself, and he was about to ask her what was wrong when she surprised him by kissing him on the lips.

That move stunned him for about a half a second, but then he wrapped his arms around her back and kissed her back. After a moment, his mother coughed purposefully and they pulled apart. They gave each other an embarrassed smile when Fred yelled, "Enough with the love fest already!" Angelina scolded him lightly after he said that. George didn't want to pull away from her though, so he reached for one of her hands and held it when they sat down.

"Happy Christmas, George," Hermione whispered when the conversation started back up again and the attention was moved away from them. "I'm sorry I don't have anything for you though," she said, looking apologetic.

"It's all right," he assured her. "That kiss was more than enough. You can make up for it by going on a date with me though," he added bravely as an afterthought. Her answer was a huge grin and another kiss on the lips. He held her close to him as they started participating in conversations. _Happy Christmas indeed, _George thought to himself as he glanced down at Hermione when she wasn't looking. Fred glanced over at him and winked. George returned it while thinking that he should take Fred's advice more often. He was completely right about everything for once.

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** A/N: Thanks for reading! I hope you liked this! Please leave a review! **


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